Method of and apparatus for forming pleats



June 3, 19 8 o. E. GIBSON ET AL 2,337,257

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING PLEATS lOl 5 She ets-Sheet 1 Filed Nov. 7, 1956 E, N K n S Tm OGL T NEG E V R M W E A W L L L w BY (Lo ATTORNEY June 3, 1958 o. E. GIBSON ET AL 2,337,257

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING PLEATS 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 7, 1956 S RS OB l N E .G VE

N M WA L UP W BY O QnXM XK ATTORNEY June 3, 1958 o. E. GIBSON ET AL 2,837,257

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING PLEATS 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed NOV. 7, 1956 FIG. 3

N S m s Y OBU E i L N NG R E .G 0 VEM. "H Wm A L m a OW Y June 3, 1958 o. E. GIBSON ErAL 2,837,257

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING PLEATS Filed Nov. 7, 1956 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 FIG. 6

INVENTOR OLIVER E. GIBSON WILLIAM G. LUECKE ATTORNEY June 3, 1958 o. E. GIBSON ET AL 2,337,257

' METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING PLEATS Filed Nov. 7, 1956 s Sheets-Sheet 5 FIG. u

' 12 INVENTORS OLIVER E.GIBSON WILLIAM G. LUECKE ATTORNEY METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING PLEAT S Oliver E. Gibson, Skokie, and William G. iiueclre, Chicago, Bl.

Application November 7, 1956, Serial No. 620,961

4 7 Claims. (Cl. 223-30) The present invention relates to methods of and apparatus for forming pleats or folds in material, and more particularly to methods of and apparatus for forming pleats or folds in draperies.

It has been particularly difficult to form pleats or folds in draperies after dry cleaning, in that it has been the another, which is a costly operation and seldom gives' satisfactory results.

In copending application Serial No. 626,960, filed on November 7, 1956, in the name of W. G. Luecke, there is disclosed apparatus for manual operation for forming pleats. While such apparatus would give some degree of satisfactory results, it is slow to operate and requires manual operations to form the pleats in folds.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide semiautomatic apparatus for forming pleats or folds in'material.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a method of and apparatus for forming pleats in draperies in a simple, rapid and efficient manner.

A still further object of the invention is to provide apparatus for forming pleats or folds in draperies which are accurate and neat irrespective ofthe size of the draperybeing processed.

An embodiment of an apparatus embodying the present inventionmay include a plurality of upstanding members to receive material to be pleated thereover, means to move the upstanding members toward andaway from each other, a plurality of downwardly extending membersextending in spaced opposed relation to the upstanding members,means'to' move the'downwardly extending members witli respect to each other, and means to move one of the plurality'of'rnembersvth -respect to the other plurality of members to forrnpleats therebetween in the material.

Generally, the apparatus comprises a lower sectionto which is upstandingly'positioned'a series of longitudinally extending slats'which'are movable-laterally with respect to each ther,'-and which are further movable as a unit 'in -anoutwardly direction'to facilitate loading. Secured "above theslats and lower section are a plurality of cothe stepsof placing material to bepleated over a plurality of upstanding spaced members, applying force to'the Paent O F practice to either leave the drapery unfolded or to com- I ass-232s Patented June 3, 1%58 ice material to push it down between the upstanding members to form pleats therein, removing the source of force from the material while maintaining the members in operated positionclose to each other, and removing the pleated material from the members. I

A more complete understanding of the invention may be obtained by reference to the attached drawings, wherein similar numerals are utilized to identify similar parts throughout the several views, and wherein: I

Fig. 1 illustrates a side elevation view, partly'broken away, of the apparatus in its unoperated position;

Fig. 2 illustrates a front elevation view of a portion of the apparatus shown in Fig. l; I

Fig. 3 illustrates a top view of a portion of the lower section of the apparatus shown in Fig. 1; I

Fig. 4 illustrates a partial front elevation-view of the lower section shown in Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 illustrates a bottom view of a slat of the lower section of the apparatus;

Fig. 6 illustrates an enlarged view of a portion of the lower section of the apparatus; i I I I Fig. 7 illustrates an exploded enlarged view of a carriage used in the upper section of the apparatus;

Fig. 8 illustrates an assembled view of the carriage of Fig. 7 with a reinforcing member added; I I I Fig; 9 illustrates an enlarged View of a carriage used in the lower section of the apparatus; I I II II Fig. 10 illustrates portions of the upper andflower sections of the apparatus in an unoperated'positiom I Fig. 11 illustrates the portions of the apparatus'show'n in Fig. 10 in a partially operated position; I I I I Fig. 12 illustrates the portions of theapparat'us shown in ll) in an operated position, and I I II I Fig. 13 illustrates a portion only of the" apparatus shown in Fig. 12 in a subsequently operated position. I

Referring now to the drawings, and particularly to Figs. land 2 thereof, a base indicated generally by 'th e nurtieral 16 is provided which has rollers or casters 17 'near' the four corners thereof to provide mobility of the apparatus. Obviously, the base could be secured t o the ifloor or; a bench if desired. The base further consists of connecting members 18 to provide rigidity and upwardly extending posts 19 to support the lower operating sectionof the apparatus, designated generally by the numeral 21.] The posts 19 are of the type which are individually adjustable to permit leveling of the operating portions of cheapparatus. Angle members 22 extend across the. frontand back of the apparatus above the posts 19, an'd' support channel members 23 which extend along the sides of the apparatus. The channel members 23' are ea'ch'provided with rollers 24 rotatably secured therein;- I II I r The lower section 21 is provided with c hannel'm embers 26 which extend across the front'and back of the apparatus, and which are connected at the'two sides by angle members 27. The members 27 ride on the rollers 24 to permit the lower section 21 to be moved'outwardly with respect to the base 16 by means of a hand ranzs to facilitate loading and unloading of a drapery inthe apparatus. The rollers 24 and angles'27 form'a' slideway which is well known, such as is used' for drawersin metal furniture.

Secured near opposite-sides of the channels 26, at both.

back and front, is'a member 28. The members 28 are secured by bolts 29' and are permitted to float by means of springs 31. The members 28 each have a plurality of members 32 secured thereto which are provided with inverted T-sh'aped slots 33 therein (Fig. 6). The T-shaped slots 33 receive a T-section which extends downwardly from I-beam members 34. As illustrated herein, there are five members 34- secured to each of the members 28, which extend in parallel spaced relationship from thefront of the apparatus toward the rear. All of A pin 39 extends upwardly from the carriage 36 and is secured rigidly thereto. Thus, through the interoperation of the I-beam members 34 and the wheels 38, the

carriages 36 may move toward the front and rear of the apparatus.

Extending laterally and parallelly across the lower section 21 are a plurality of slats 41. Each slat 4}. is provided with reinforcing members 42 which are U-shaped and are secured to both sides of the slat. There are two members 42 to a slat, near opposite extremities thereof. As shown in Fig. 6, near one extremity of the slat 41there is provided an aperture 43 which extends upwardly from the bottom of the slat at the point of one of the reinforcing members 42. The aperture 43 is provided to receive one of the pins 39 of one of the carriages 36. Near the opposite extremity of each slat 41, a second aperture 44 is provided, see Fig. 5, but in this instance the aperture 44 is rectangular in shape; it also is positioned at the point of a reinforcing member 42, and also is designed to receive the pin 39 of a second carriage 36. From the above it. may be understood that as each:slat 41 is supported near opposite extremities by a carriage 36 that it may be moved in parallel planes toward the front and rear of the apparatus on spaced I-beam. members 34. The rectangular aperture 44 is provided toprevent any binding as a slat 41 is moved.

In the instant disclosure, there are eleven slats 41. As there. are five I-beam members 34 on each side of the apparatus, each unit of five of which must provide eleven carriages 36 for. movement of the slats, it has been determined that all members 34 need not extend completely to the rear of the apparatus, thus reducing the cost of construction of the apparatus. It should be understood, however, that a greater or lesser number of slats 41 may be utilized, depending on the size of apparatus desired and the number of pleats to be made. Each of the slats 41 is provided with a plurality of apertures or slots 46in the upper surface thereof, Figs. 2 and 6.

.The spacing between adjacent of the slats 41 is predetermined and is controlled by a pair of tapes 47 which are secured at opposite sides of each slat by securing members 48 at the bottom of the reinforcing members 42, Fig. 6. Each tape 47 is connected to all of the slats 41 at predetermined intervals of the tape.

' In order that the slats 41 may be moved with respect to each other, a chain or rope 49 is provided which has one end secured to the rearmost slat 41 (Fig. l). The

rope extends around a pair of idler pulleys 51, around a drive pulley 52, around a second pair of idler pulleys 51 near the front of the apparatus, and then has its opposite extremity secured also to the rearmost slat 41, but on the opposite side to the first connection. The drive pulley 52 is rotated bya belt 53 secured to the drive of a reversible electric motor 54 secured to the lower section 21. It should be noted that the two most rearward slats 41 are separated by a plate or table 56.

Extending across the front of the lower section 21 of the apparatus is a plate or table 57 which is secured to the front channel member 26 by means of brackets 58, Figs. 2 and 4. The plate 57 has secured therethrough a plurality of hook-shaped pins 59, which have a spring 61 surrounding the portion thereof below the plate 57 to perimt the pins 59 to be raised. 7

Referring again to Figs. 1 and 2, it may be seen that at erally by the numeral 72.

62 are secured to the members 22 and 23 to provide rigidity. Secured rigidly at the upper portion of the columns 62 is a correcting plate 63 which extends across the back of the apparatus. At each side of the apparatus, a pair of angle members 64 are rigidly secured to the columns 62, each of which is provided with a bearing surface 66 to receive a post 67.

The posts-67 are interconnected at the top by a channel member 69 which has flanges 71 near opposite extremities thereof extending on both sides to receive the one extremity of a turn buckle assembly, indicated gen- The opposite extremities of the assemblies 72 are secured to the four corners of a box-like structure, formed by four angle members 74, forming a portion of an upper section, indicated generally by the numeral 73. I

The section '73 is provided with a pair of members 75, Fig. 2, similar in purpose and operation to the members 23, described previously. Each member 75 is connected to a member '74 and is provided with elements '76, similar to members 32, for supporting a plurality of l-beain members 77, similar to members 34. in this instance, however, the members '77 will depend from the member 75, rather than be supported above as was'.the structure of the member 28.

The I-beam members 77 are provided to serve as a track for a plurality of carriages, indicated generally by the numeral 78, Figs. 7 and 8. The carriages 78 are similar to the carriages 36 in that they consist of a U-shaped body 79 provided with four wheels 81. However, instead of a pin 39 secured thereto as for carriages 36, the carriages 78 are provided with an oval aperture 82 which receives a pin 83. The pin 83 is provided at one extremity with an oval head 84, which will enter the aperture 82 but, when rotated 90 degrees, will not be able to pass through the aperture. This is necessary, for in this instance the carriages 78 are inverted in positon, and the pin 83 depends therefrom. Each pin 83 is provided near the extremity opposite from the head 84 with an aperture 86 extending completely therethrough and extending parallel to the length of the head 84..

In assembling the carriages 78, the pin 83 is inserted in the aperture 82 and then turned 90 degrees, in which position the head 84 cannot pass through the aperture. A U-shaped reinforcing member 87 is then placed down over the pin 83 by means of an aperture therein and a locking pin 88 is then passed through apertures in the sides of the U and through the aperture 86 in the pin 83. A shim or washer 89 is placed, prior to member 87 being placed on the pin 83, between. the member 87 and the body 79 and permits the entire assembly to hold together.

After the assembly described above is completed, a slat 91 is secured between the open sides of the member 87 by any suitable means, such as welding or rivet- 1 ing, The slats 91 are generally similar tothe slats 41,

the rear of the apparttus there is provided upwardly ex- .but they do not have the apertures 43, 44 or 46. Any

binding is overcome in movement of the slats 91 by virtue of the oval-shaped apertures 82 in the carriages 78, which permit play during movement. The slats 91 are positioned in such a manner that in their unoperated position they are spaced at about the midpoint of adjacent slats '41 in the lower section zl, Fig. 10, and extend across the apparatus in parallel relationship.

The slats 91 are spaced by tapes, not shown, similar to the tapes 47, and a rope or chain'92 is secured to the rearmost' slat 91. The rope 92 passes over an idler pulley 93, secured to one of the channel members 74, and terminates in a spring 94 which is secured to a bracket 96 extending from the column 62. Because of the resiliency of the spring 94,- the slats 91 will be held in their-spaced position in an unoperated position of the apparatus, Figs. 1 and 10. v

a A spring loaded pulley 97 is secured to one of the angle members 64 and has a rope or chain 98 secured thereto.v The rope 98..pas ses overan ,idler pulley99 secured to:v a column .member 62 .andsterminates .in. a counterweight 101. Thus, under nonoperating conditions of the apparatus, the weight 101 causes. the entire upper section 73 ofthe apparatus, described above, to be in its raised position away from the, lower section 21 (Fig. 1).

A hand bar 102 is provided to permit manual opera- 6 The handrail 25- may, now.be. grasped. and .the lower section 21 slid forwardly; .on, the rollers 24 to its foremost position. However, as themotor 54 is in stopped tion. of the upper section of the apparatus, as will now be described.

In theoperation of the apparatus. let it be assumed .that itis in, an unoperated position, as shown. inFig. 1.

An operator may grasp the hand rail 25. and. cause. the

lower section 21 to be moved forward on therollers 24 from under the upper section 73. A drapery 103 may then be vloadedon the, tops of the. lower slats 41, Fig. 10, with approximately the same amount of material between adjacent-slats, The drapery 103 will beplaced on the apparatus with the. stitched, buckrumplate 56.

After loading, the lower section 21 may be pushed to the rear on the rollers 24, to assume the position shown in Fig. 10. It might be noted that a latch, of conventional type, may be employed to prevent the lower section 21 from being pulled off of the rollers 24 and out of the apparatus. With the lower section 21 in rearward position, the operator may grasp the hand rail 102 and urge the upper section downwardly, the pressure exerted overcoming the force of the counterweight 101 and permitting the posts 67 to move in the bearing surfaces 66. At a predetermined position in the downward travel of the upper section, a limit switch (not shown) will be actuated automatically to start the drive motor 54. In the alternative, a manual motor switch (not shown) may be utilized to start the motor. During the initial downward movement, the upper slats 91 will exert pressure on the drapery 103 to partly form the pleats, as shown in Fig. 11.

As the motor 54 operates, it will drive belt 53 and in turn rotate pulley 52, in a manner such as to cause the rope 49 to exert pressure on the back slat 41 to cause it to move forwardly. Simultaneously, the operator continues to exert downward pressure on the upper section, and the slats 91 will move further downwardly with respect to the slats 41. As the upper section is lowered, the tension of the spring 94 will be decreased, the rope 92 will slacken in tension, and the slats 91 will be urged toward each other and toward the front of the apparatus through the motor drive on the slats 41. The movement of the slats 41 is accomplished by the carriages 36 riding on the I-beam members 34, and the movement of the slats 91 by the carriages 78 on the I-beam members 77.

At such time as the slats 41 are driven to 'a position as close as possible, approximately as shown inFig. 12, the upper slats 91 should be positioned in .their lowermost position, thus completing the pleating operation. If desired, a second limit switch (notfshown) may be provided so that the motor 54 will be shutoff automatically when the slats 91 are in their lowermost position, or a stop switch (not shown) may be operated condition, the slats 41 will still remain closely together. The operator may now remove. the clips,.10 4 and grasp the drapery 103 atthev pointswhere the apertures 46 are in the slats 41 to. raise it and remove it from the apparatus.

A switch (not shown) maynow be operated to reverse the motor 54, and cause the drive of the drive pulley 52 and therope 49.to be reversed to move the slats. 41 to their position .forthe. unoperated apparatus, such as shown in Fig. 1.

In the event that the drapery 103: is wider thanthe apparatus, the pleatedqportion wouldqbe placed on the table 57', under .the pins 59, as shown in. Fig. 13, and the remainder of the drapery 103 from the plate 56 would be placed over theslats 41, and the pleating operation repeated. This, of course, may be done severaltimes, ifnecessary.

It .should also. be notedthat, if desired, a .vibrator may'besupplied to the members.28,.which may be placed in operation during the pleating to assure proper allocation of the material between adjacent slats 41 and to enhance the pleating operation.

It should be understood that the apparatus might be designed so that the upper section is stationary and the lower section moves upwardly. The motive power for upward movement might be by hydraulic pressure, by motor, or any suitable means.

While a specific embodiment of the invention has been disclosed and described, it is understood that the invention is not limited thereto, but that other embodiments may be utilized, all within the scope and spirit of the present invention.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for forming pleats in material, compris ing a base, a plurality of upstanding parallel-1y extending members secured to said base, means to move 'each of said upstanding members with respect to said base, means secured to said base and extending above and over said upstanding members, a plurality of downwardly parallelly extending members secured to said means, means to move each of said downwardly extending members with respect to said securing means, means to move said securing means toward said base, whereby said upstanding members and downwardly extending members cooperate with each other to form pleats in material placed there'between, and means connected to said securing means for moving saidv securing means away from said base, whereby 'the pleated material may be removed from said upstanding parallelly extending members.

2. Apparatus for forming pleats in material, comprising a lower section, a plurality of upstanding members secured to said lower section, an upper section, a plurality of downwardly extending members secured to said upper section and positioned in spaced opposed relation to said upstanding members, means to move said upper and lower sections toward and away from each other, whereby said upstanding members and said downwardly extending members will cooperate to form pleats in material placed therebetween, and means to move said lower section laterally with respect to said upper section, whereby to facilitate placing or removing material there'between.

3. Apparatus for forming pleats in material, comprising a plurality of upstanding members, means to move said upstanding members toward and away from each other, a plurality of downwardly extending members ex tending in spaced opposed relation to said upstanding members, means to move said downwardly extending a members with respect to each other, and means to move one of said plurality of members with respect to said other plurality of members, said means to move said upstanding members and said means to move said downwardly extending members cooperating to form pleats in material placed between said pair of plurality of members, said upstanding members having apertures at the tops thereofto permit the pleated material to be removed readily from the closely spaced upstanding members.

4. Apparatus -for forming pleats in material, comprising a lower section, a plurality of tracks on said lower section, a plurality of carriage-s for movement on said tracks, a plurality of upstanding members each secured to a pair of said carriages for movement in substantially parallel relationship to each other, means for moving said upstanding members, a plurality of downwardly extending members in spaced opposed relationship to said upstanding members, means to move said downwardly extending members with respect to each other, and means to move one of said plurality of members with respect to said other plurality of members, whereby said upstanding members and said downwardlyex'tending members will cooperate to form pleats in material placed therebetween.

5. The apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein the means for moving said downwardly extending members comprises a plurality of tracks and a plurality of carriages, said members being secured to said carriages.

6. The apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein said means for moving said upstanding members comprises means connected to eachof said members, a motor, a

drive pulley drivenby said motor, and a drive belt secured at opposite ends to each side'of one of said upstanding members and driven'by said drive pulley.

7. The method of forming pleats in material, which comprises the steps of placing material over a plurality of upstanding spaced members, applying force to the material to push it down between adjacent of said upstand- References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2o 2,171,356 F'lorea Aug. 29, 1939 2,481,049 Stamm et al7 Sept. 6, 1949 2,708,059 Petzal et a1. May 10, '1955 

